In 2012, high school sweethearts and now married couple Devan and Morgan Kline led a group of women through a boot camp workout in a parking lot in Huntersville, North Carolina, with little expectations.
Without being able to afford a gym, the couple figured this was better than nothing. Six years later, the company has 187+ open locations and 165 more locations in development in 35 states.
“One thing I think gyms in America are lacking is a community element,” said Devan to Forbes, who describes the average big box gym as a sterile place where a collection of “meatheads” ogle women. “I wanted to make something that people could walk into and not feel judged.”
The company has not only grown a fanatical member following, but it has received franchise industry recognition, as well. Last February, Burn Boot Camp was the runner-up in the International Franchise Association’s NextGen competition, a contest with 900 franchise start-ups from across the world that included Shark Tank star Daymond John on the panel of judges.